The impact of data governance and analytics: An interview with the U. of Idaho

What's the impact of using data governance and analytics for the business side of education?

It's an interesting question, and during a video interview, Dale Pietrzak, Ed.D.,Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Accreditation (IEA) at the University of Idaho shared details on the results they're realizing from using SAS for data governance and analytics. It's exciting to see they progress they've made since my previous blog post. Using a range of self-service dashboards, their administrators now have access to insight-rich trend data on enrollment, admissions, student performance and more – tangible information to drive proactive decision making.

The importance of data governance

The biggest best practice in terms of that process is making sure you have a strong data governance model in place.Dale Pietrzak, University of Idaho

A positive reaction from users and leadership

According to Pietrzak, the reaction has been positive.

The majority of people really like not having to contact somebody for information. The trick has been giving them unique slice-and-dice capabilities without providing too much detail. Overall, it’s been a really positive growing experience for all.Dale Pietrzak, University of Idaho

Results

Pietrzak shares two examples of the impact. First, they've seen improvements to remediation as the data has allowed them to focus their remediation efforts on students who are most likely to respond to help. Secondly, they've seen improvements in recruitment because they can better determine where and how to target more need-based financial aid.

By using analytics to model a shift to need-based aid, we discovered a way to enroll an additional 20 to 25 students who previously may not have been able to afford higher education, equating to roughly $500,000 a year. Dale Pietrzak, University of Idaho

More sophisticated analyses

Pietrzak shares how the analyses they do has changed now that their audience is asking more sophisticated questions of the data.

The questions that come to our ofice are much more sophisticated and it requires a great deal more of the analytic side. Which is actually what we intended the office to be.Dale Pietrzak, University of Idaho

Advice for those embarking on an analytics journey

Now that the IEA team has achieved such positive results, Pietrzak has some insights and advice for those just starting their analytics journey.

Today, university officials face greater accountability and fiercer competition for students, increasing their reliance on data and analytics to anticipate the future and respond proactively to changing trends. The IEA team at University of Idaho is well positioned to help their university officials access insight-rich institutional data to address these challenges.

Our whole mission is helping students be successful in the university environment. SAS allows administrators to use their time more efficiently and focus more purposefully on what drives student success.Dale Pietrzak, University of Idaho